PentaxDA 35mm f/2.4 AL Lens for Pentax Digital SLR cameras

This is a great lens, lightweight and compact; it allows me to photograph people without attracting a lot of attention. The autofocus on this lens is very fast and accurate, and allows me to capture moving children . This has helped me to increase my keeper rates to around 90%, around a 30% increment when compared to my zoom lenses(Tamron 28-75 & 24-135); which always never had the subject in absolute focus when speed was necessary.This lens has made me understand why people love Pentax primes, and rejuvenated my passion for photography. I can carry this lens everywhere and shoot for hours without any signs of tiring. Prior to this, I sometimes used to dread taking my camera out of my bag. But now I do not think twice about doing so.One con I can think of is the usage of six aperture blades for this lens. Due to that attribute, this lens produces a smoothy blurred background with hexagonal circles of confusion; at any aperture above f2.4. This is an area where I certainly miss my zoom lenses; which produces very creamy bokeh with beautiful circles of confusions.I wish the lens was a f1.8 lens, which would have made this lens a true classic. However, I do realize why Pentax could not offer a faster lens as the DA 70mm limited is the fastest DA branded lens; which runs for 500+. If Pentax started offering lenses faster than that I guess it would be harder for them to market the 70mm limited. On the plus side, however, since this is a f2.4; the DOF at that f-stop is not razor thin and allows me to take great pictures w/o worrying about subjects being out of focus.Now, I have seen people complaining about the build quality of this lens. In my honest opinion, it is very good and tightly built. Sure the lens barrel wobbles slightly but I have held the 40mm limited (which I returned since I did not like the FOV) and Canon 24mm f2.8, and IMHO the build quality of the 40mm is not that superior than the DA 35mm f2.4, and the Canon is pretty appalling compared to this lens. So, I don't have any complaints with the build quality of this lens. Other camera manufacturers have been getting away with far less. It is certainly near the build quality of my Tamron 28-75, which has loosened up a lot after 2+ years of reliable service.

This modern entry-level prime is still higher priced than the competition. Canon, Nikon, and Sony all have 50mm primes at F1.8 aperture below the 150 price mark. That said, this is stil a welcome addition to the Pentax lens selection.If you search at photozone.de there is a nice review of its performance. It says its sharp with excellent resolution wide open at F2.4, and I totally agree. Things in focus really pop out and look 3D.I like the focal length (53mm in terms of film) which is not too zoomed in and not too wide. 50mm was the standard kit during the film era. The 1:6x magnification is not great, but its close enough for food shots of your plate or head and shoulder portraits (bust).Focus is fast because the lenses themselves are very light. But its screw-driven by the camera so you can hear it. Accuracy was spot on in my sample. If you use a k-x, research about "modset.492" it can allow you to fine tune your autofocus for back or front focus. Since its not official, proceed with your own risks.Image quality is great. Lots of contrast. Excellent to very good at F/2.4 and almost off the scale excellent at F/4. Aperture blades are not rounded so although bokeh is smooth wide open, highlights do get edgy starting at F/4. Front bokeh looks a tad more nervous.Vignetting (dark corners) and CA (color fringing at high contrast areas) are well controlled and I dont worry about them in my pictures. Flare controll is excellent too, as shots into the sun did not make any prominent ghosting.Like always, a prime lens means that you do the zooming with your feet. But in a way that inspires you to get different angles once your moving around.For its performance its 5 stars. For the price you pay I would say 4 stars. No hood is included nor does the lens have any attaching location if there ever was one. But considering its performance, I dont think it needs one anyway.